Patricia Starbird, M.S., LPC/MHSP, EMDRIA Certified

Licensed Professional Counselor

Eating disorders are not about food. They are about control. As a child, we don't have much control and sometimes we are placed in situations where we are helpless to prevent abuse, neglect, and mistreatment. Just as the alcoholic drinks to "numb out" to their emotional pain, the young woman with an eating disorder will soothe herself with food before purging, or restrict food to combat the painful feeling of helplessness. Eating disorders are treatable. You must work with a therapist who has expertise in working with trauma. Such a therapist will work gently with you, at your own pace, and in a way that will assist you in healing the pain that is driving the eating disorder.